Feeling Frustrated as a Photographer? This Will Help

Photography, like any artistic pursuit, will see the flow of your creative juices wax and wane, and it can be a real struggle when things are not going well. However, that might actually be the best time to consider your process and how you approach things, and from that, new ideas might grow. This great video discusses the issue and what you can do to overcome it.

Coming to you from Henry Turner, this excellent video discusses feeling frustrated with the work you are producing and what you can do to get yourself back on the right track. As Turner discusses, this can often happen when you are used to photographing things a certain way and those conditions suddenly do not materialize. For example, you might enjoy shooting golden hour sunsets with dramatics swaths of light cutting across the sky, but if you head out to shoot and encounter a gray, overcast sky, you might feel stuck or even like leaving the house was pointless. But I firmly believe that every scene and type of light can produce good photographs so long as you work with what you have and not against it in an attempt to produce a preconceived image that is not there. In fact, these can be the best times to grow as a creative. Check out the video above for Turner's full thoughts. 

Alex Cooke's picture

Alex Cooke is a Cleveland-based portrait, events, and landscape photographer. He holds an M.S. in Applied Mathematics and a doctorate in Music Composition. He is also an avid equestrian.

Log in or register to post comments
2 Comments

I’ve started shooting more video, to mix it up.

How about this? Stop looking for the spectacular shot, go walking, just start looking around and take photos. I go out my front door and have been taking lots of photos. Practice, practice, practice. (This shot was taken at my local creek.)